Autism Spectrum Disorders and Gender Dysphoria Among Children and Adolescents: Systematic Review on the Co-Occurrence

ObjectiveThe review systematically reviews the literature on co-occurring gender dysphoria/gender variance and autism spectrum disorder among children and adolescents. MethodsA systematic literature search was conducted for the years 1946 to December 2018. Results144 publications could be identified in the literature search. Out of these, 22 publications met the inclusion criteria for the systematic review. 4.7 to 13.3 % of the children and adolescents with primarily diagnosed gender dysphoria/variance examined in the studies also had an autism diagnosis. In samples of children and adolescents with primarily diagnosed autism gender variance was overrepresented with a prevalence of 4 to 6.5 %. ConclusionThe results of the systematic review point towards an overrepresentation of co-occurring gender dysphoria/variance and autism spectrum disorder. Methodological and clinical implications are discussed.